The restaurant industry is notoriously difficult. Long-term restaurant success and profitability can be hard to achieve, making it vital to be aware of the day-to-day performance of the business. To make that easier, PointofSale.com recently published an article highlighting seven key restaurant performance metrics, with advice on how to evaluate them. We’ll share those tips below.

For point of sale systems to help with restaurant efficiency, performance and reporting, check out the full Retail Tech catalog of new and refurbished PoS systems.

Break-Even Point

This number – which is the amount that a restaurant must make in sales to earn back an investment – should be calculated first. Then, additional projections can be made based on that number. It can be used for the opening of a new restaurant or when a big purchase or improvement is made.

Cost of Goods Sold

This refers to the cost required to create each of the items sold to customers. Because this is usually one of the largest expenses for restaurants, this will allow owners to identify ways to minimize these costs.

Overhead Rate

This is a way to look at a restaurant’s fixed costs (rent, utilities, etc.), broken down to an hour-by-hour or day-by-day basis, allowing for a more incremental view of how much it costs to run the restaurant.

Prime Cost

This is the sum of the cost of goods sold (detailed earlier here) and the total labor costs, including wages, benefits and any others. This is a good summary number of all of a restaurant’s controllable expenses, and shows how careful labor management could lower costs and increase profit.

Food Cost Percentage

This is the difference between the cost of the ingredients in a specific menu item and that item’s selling price.

Gross Profit

After accounting for the cost of the goods sold, this number shows the profit made by the restaurant, which represents the money available for paying expenses and for profit.

Employee Turnover Rate

Because the restaurant industry has a high turnover rate, it’s important to track employee turnover – the percentage of employees that quit or are fired – for maximum operational efficiency.

Experts recommend that owners calculate these restaurant performance metrics regularly – monthly or weekly – and identify trends in order to identify and fix problem areas and improve performance and profits.

Retail Tech is proud to be a partner of the restaurant industry. We carry a wide variety of new and refurbished point of sale (PoS) systems and parts. We offer key services, including installation and staging, and PoS printer repairs. Contact our point of sale systems specialists for help finding the perfect solution for your business.

Reinventing Retail for 2020

Shopping is a large part of every culture. Whether it is getting the basics or going for the new and fun items, retail has been around for over 100 years. Shopping has evolved from the “mom and pop” shops to giant global corporations that offer just about anything. Now that retailing has become a huge part of the global economy, the impact of trends are important to follow and plan for. Looking ahead to 2020, we can gather information from recent changes and be prepared for more to come. Here are some changes to anticipate in the next few years:

The Baby boomers will be in their 60s or 70s and supporting their aging families or unemployed children. They will also be working on rebuilding their savings for retirement. Baby boomers will no longer be spending as much money on discretionary retail purchases, making them less of a loyal consumer.

The Millennials, who will be in their 30s, will be the main consumers for retailers. However, they tend to value quality over quantity and have a real passion for social causes. Having grown up using the internet for everything, retailers will need to be able to offer products and experiences in various outlets that are important and valuable to the millennials to be most successful.

Consumers in general will have a less disposable income and an adjusted spending behavior. Those that are positioned to serve the middle market have seen their share of a shrinking trend, the hourglass effect. Retailers in the middle will need to rethink their value to avoid a continued loss of market share.

Things to consider for retailers today to prepare for the changes in the next 5 years:

Appeal to millennials: These are the shoppers to target for the widest range of categories of goods

Invest: Build and maintain a strong, compelling brand

Ease: Make it easy to shop whenever, wherever

Technology: Utilize your store and technology as a competitive weapon. Customers are more likely to go to a store when they are motivated and given a reason to do so. Create a positive environment within their in-store experience

As we are reinventing retail, again, ask yourself if you have a strategy that will allow you to stand out and meet the needs of the 2020 consumers. With the next decade coming in fast, it’s time to get going. For questions regarding POS systems, and to find the right POS system for you, visit our website or call us toll free at 1-877-580-9687.

Slow Transition for a Big Change to Chip Card Processing

Most companies now have chip card readers, but some have been slow to implement the new technology. The United States began accepting chips on credit cards on October 1st, 2015. This also made merchants responsible for fraudulent charges made at their establishment if they did not have working chip readers. Financial institutions also became liable for fraud if they did not provide their customers with chips. The U.S. adopted this technology after many data breaches and credit card crime, as Europe had already begun in the 90’s. What is causing the slow implementation? Slate.com gives us insight on the slow process and steps into these new cards.

The timing of an October implementation scared large businesses. This is the beginning of the Holiday shopping season and they were wary of starting a new large systematic change during their busiest season. The process would be new to customers who are generally in a hurry to get their purchases made and go, and it may pose a frustrating task for both consumers and employees. Also, any initial problems with transaction could cost the company money during this heightened sales time.

Switching systems is a multi step process. Each terminal costs $500 each, and then they must install the software for each terminal. Each company then has to be certified by the banks and every card network that they accept at their establishment. For example, if the business does not accept American Express, they would not have to clear it with them, but if one accepted all major cards, each would need to be contacted.

Small businesses are slow to get going because they do not see as much fraud, and are less motivated to spend the money for the new systems. They will eventually get there, but it will be a slower transition. When fraud is not a huge concern for their business or customers, it is not quite worth the money, time and strain to get chip readers right away.

Soon enough, all businesses will be utilizing the chip card reader as every consumer will have brand new chip cards. Swiping will be a thing of the past, in hopes of cutting down on data breeches and fraudulent charges.

For questions regarding POS systems, and to find the right POS system for you, visit our website or call us toll free at 1-877-580-9687.

Cash Registers Vs. POS Systems

For many years, cash registers were the only way to go when completing sales in a store, shop, or restaurant. But with the advent of technology, the options have expanded to a variety of systems that work best for your business. Point of Sale systems have many benefits that can increase your business as well as please your customers. The Point of Sale News discusses the perks of POS systems compared to traditional cash registers:

Point of sale systems simplify the accounting process. Old fashioned cash registers force accountants to sort through hundreds of receipts, but with a point of sale system financial personnel can simply use the built in reports or create their own.

Unlike a cash register, a point of sale system often includes an overall inventory management system. Store owners can use a point of sale system to track their biggest sellers and reorder those products when stock gets low.

It is easy to look up past transactions. If you need to know how much you sold last Tuesday a point of sale system can give you that information in a snap. It would take many hours of laborious work to find the same answer using a cash register.

You can use a point of sale system to create your own purchase orders, eliminating an extra step in the ordering process. You can even automate the ordering process to make sure you never run out of your hottest selling products.

Modern workers are often more comfortable with point of sale devices than old fashioned cash registers. The generation now entering the workforce never knew a time without computers, and as a result they are very comfortable working with computerized technology like point of sale devices.

Point of sale devices provide faster service than old fashioned cash registers. Every part of the process, from authorizing a credit card transaction to printing a customer receipt, is faster on a point of sale device.

Customers receive more informative itemized receipts with a point of sale devices. Many cash registers can only print the date and the amount of the sale, but since point of sale devices are tied into the inventory control system they can provide much more detailed information, including a description of the item, the list price and the sale price.

Point of sale devices can cut down on user errors. Hitting a wrong key is always a risk when ringing a sale, but point of sale devices have built in checks to ensure that the information is entered accurately.

You can see real time inventory with a point of sale device, something that even the best cash registers simply cannot do. In fact, many companies have found that implementing a point of sale system virtually eliminates the need for a costly hand count.

The maintenance and repair costs are often much lower on a point of sale device than a cash register. The number of companies that repair cash registers is dwindling, and that means that repair costs can be rather high. There are many vendors who repair point of sale devices, and that can keep repair costs low.

For questions regarding POS systems, and to find the right POS system for you, visit our website at http://retailtechinc.com/ or call toll free at 1-877-580-9687.

In the midst of the technological age, changes occur at a rapid rate. It is nearly impossible to keep up with the changes, but it is possible to be adept at the changes that occur. Keeping ahead of the trends is one way to stay updated on what technological changes will be occurring soon. Cash Drawer listed the top trends that would be occurring in 2016:

Industry Consolidation
Mergers and acquisitions are sure to continue through 2016 as industry players seek new routes to profitability. The trend toward offering complete solutions, as opposed to delivering separate pieces of the POS and cash management puzzle, is one of the main drivers of ongoing consolidation in our space.

We’ll see more companies focusing on end-to-end solutions to widen their product offerings and maximize value for customers[…]No doubt, consolidation requires some adjustments on the part of the dealer, but the ultimate result of a merger or acquisition is a stronger partner that can better support its customers overall.

Mobility Expansion
One trend that is guaranteed to keep gaining momentum is the move toward secure wireless and mobile POS systems. Businesses want the flexibility and convenience of using tablets connected to other wireless POS components so patrons don’t have to line up at a counter to complete transactions. In restaurants and eateries, the use of tablets to take orders and customer payments at tableside will become more and more popular. For an increasing number of businesses that need POS technology, the future is in wireless and mobility.

EMV Adoption
EMV (Europay, MasterCard and VISA) implementations reached a crescendo in recent months, following the Oct. 1 deadline for U.S. merchants to adopt the technology, which aims to minimize fraudulent payment card transactions. Almost two-thirds of merchants were not ready for the transition as of the deadline, but many will accelerate implementation plans to avoid getting held accountable for any fraud that could have been prevented with EMV technology.

As the transition occurs, dealers must be ready to support their customers’ plans, which in many cases will require replacing POS hardware and applications – and we will be ready with cash management and cash drawer solutions to support our dealers.

For questions regarding POS systems, and to find the right POS system for you, visit our website or call toll free at 1-877-580-9687.